


The First Morning of Spring

by florencedrunk



Series: The March 2017 Stucky Challenge [22]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: M/M, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-22
Updated: 2017-03-22
Packaged: 2018-10-09 08:30:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 779
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10408083
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/florencedrunk/pseuds/florencedrunk
Summary: "You made Steve sad," Sam says as soon as he enters the room. "What did you say to him?""Why don't you ask him? You're his best friend.""No, you're his best friend.""No, hewas."221. broken reflection





	

**Author's Note:**

> This is a sequel to [this](https://archiveofourown.org/works/10236914), but I guess it could be read by its own.

"You made Steve sad," Sam says as soon as he enters the room. "What did you say to him?"

"Why don't you ask him? You're his best friend."

"No, you're his best friend."

"No, _he_ was."

 

* * *

 

(From time to time, the Winter Soldier comes into the cell — not through the door, but from inside his head. He stands in the corner of the room and just stares at him.

"You had a mission," the masked figure says. "You failed."

"Hydra doesn't exist anymore," is his response. He doesn't say it aloud, but the Soldier understands.

"They're just hiding. You should escape, return to them," he says. "They're the only ones who know who you really are.")

 

* * *

 

"You're not making this easy," the red-haired woman says. Her name is Natasha, but, sometimes, he calls her Natalia in his head.

"I know you," he says. He hates the way the words come out when he speaks English. He wants to scrub his tongue until he scratches the Russian out of it. "I remember you— from before."

"We met, once, in Odessa," she says. "You killed the man I was protecting."

"No," he says. "It was before that, a long time ago. You were young, but it couldn't have been you, right?"

 

* * *

 

(There's an empty road, and a motorcycle following a car. Two targets. He shoots only once, and that's all it takes for the car to swerve and collide into a wall. Mission accomplished)

 

* * *

 

"You're curious about the arm," he asks Stark. "Why?"

He keeps coming. He just sits in front of him and doesn't say anything. There are cameras in the cell, so he's not seeing anything that he couldn't see from whatever penthouse he lives in.

"I'm sorry," the man spits out, and even he looks surprised that those words are coming out of his mouth. "It's just... impressive."

"I've seen your suits, _those_ are impressive."

"Yeah, but I started working on those in 2008. You've had this arm since what, the late forties?" he says. "Could I— could I take a look at it?"

"Sure, if you're not scared I might strangle you," he says, extending his arm in his direction.

Stark snorts and gets closer. He runs his hands up and down the arm — he seems particularly interested in understanding how the metal connects to his shoulder.

"It's— does it hurt?"

"Of course it does."

 

* * *

 

(There's a woman, and he's strangling her. She whimpers one last time and then goes limp. Her daughter is in the next room, sleeping. She isn't a target. Mission accomplished.)

 

* * *

 

"Your sister is still alive," Rogers says. "Becca, you remember her?"

"No," he says — it's a lie.

"You remembered me."

"Did I?"

"You saved me," he says. "I was your target, you didn't kill me."

"You weren't my target," he explains. "Romanov was, and that other man, the one who betrayed us."

"Us?"

"Hydra."

"You're not Hydra."

"What am I, then?"

"They tortured you," Rogers says. "They kept you prisoner for seventy years."

"They made me powerful."

"They made you kill people"

"So did you — you made _him_ kill people," he says. "He followed you into the war and learned to kill people without feeling a thing about it. You did that to him."

 

* * *

 

(From time to time, Bucky Barnes comes into the cell — not through the door, but from inside his head. He stands in the corner of the room and just stares at him.

"You love him," he says. "I know _I_ do."

"I'm not you."

"No, you're not," he says. "But some things have roots too deep to be ripped out.")

 

* * *

 

"You told Steve you don't remember," Sam says.

He should have been more careful, he shouldn't have let any of the others find out. He should have just shut up and let them get bored of him.

"I don't want him to think he can save me."

"Why not?"

"Because he can't."

"Why not?"

"Why do you think he can?"

"I don't think he can," Sam begins. "But I knew this man once, he was my best friend. Him and I — Riley was his name — we flew together. And then I saw him being shot out of the sky. I just— I just there, and watched him fall. That's what happened to Steve, he watched you fall," he continues. "And some pretty shitty happened to you, too. And then you watched him fall, and you jumped after him."

"I didn't know who he was, not— not yet."

"Okay, but that's exactly the point," he says. "I don't think Steve can save you, I think you're the only one who can."

"What if you're wrong?"

"What if I'm right?"

**Author's Note:**

> If you have questions or just want to say hi you can find me on [tumblr.](http://florencedrunk.tumblr.com)


End file.
